Suggested Activities for Young or Multi-Disabled Blind Children
By Angelo Montagnino

1. Opening and closing doors

2. Carrying objects: one hand, two hands, large and light, small and heavy, etc.

3. Crawling (tunnels, over mats, mats on top of obstacles, up and down ramps, etc.)

4. Walking trips (over gravel, rocks, grass, sand, dirt, cement and blacktop, carpet, tile, over logs, up and down ramps, stairs, puddles, large boulders, logs, chains, etc.)

5. Examine and climb trees

6. Climbing (stairs, climbing equipment, boards, rolled mats, tables, benches, etc.). Climb up, down, across, on incline, decline, under, turn, etc.

7. Swings: Be pushed or twirled, on tummy and seated, push with hands and feet (if low enough), twirl, sit sideways (one foot on each side of swing, etc.)

8. Swing by hands and feet (swung by 2 adults)

9. Expose to wheel toys

10. Rocking horse, teeter-totter

11. Punch ball attached to wrist

12. Suspend balloon from ceiling so it touches student's head. Encourage play, tapping turning, holding

13. Various size and shape balloons—feel, rub on face and hands, adult makes speech sounds or vibrations on balloon

14. Shopping bags or boxes to carry and empty objects out

15. Sit and twirl in a swivel chair

16. Tinker toys

17. Boxes to use as tunnels or to crawl through, feel all sides, poke fingers through a hole and grab someone's hand or talk to from outside box

18. Construct a balance beam from a long, 10-12 inch wide board, placing it on two very low supports and scoot, walk or straddle beam

19. Hang on a suspended rope swing

20. Roller skate or get a free ride on various types of wheel vehicles including a tricycle. Pull the vehicle with a rope, with student on it or doing the pulling

21. Mat work for simple balances. Place student on hands and knees, teacher sits and lifts student's legs one at a time, etc. Simple stunts—roll like a log, etc.

22. Ball skills—bouncing, twirling, kicking, rolling ball against a wall and catch, roll toward a sound (knock down target)

23. Sand or sandbox play (you can even use plastic particles or pebbles). Provide scoop, funnel, shovel, pail, cardboard rolls, milk carton, spoons, sifters, cans or jars—demonstrate play

Manipulative Fun Toys

24. Toys: Old spinning tops (listen, feel it), Slinky, Jack in the Box, Fisher Price Peek-a-Boo, etc.

25. Dance movements to music—walk sideways left and right, forward and backward, hold hands in a circle

26. Hop up and down

27. Hand puppets

28. Play with large blocks or cubes, foam, coffee cans with plastic lids, shoe boxes, paper cups, etc.

29. Inner tubes or tires—roll it, crawl through, walk on it, jump on or climb in, sit on, step in and out, line up several tires or tubes or tie together

30. Water play—large basin or sink or small pool filled with water and a number of materials or toys: sponges, boats, rubber duckies. Wash items, including rubbing and squeezing.

31. Water pistol to squirt self or others, objects such as balloons or items that will make a sound when water strikes them, fill a cup, etc.

32. Wastebasket play—toss a ball or beanbag into it from one foot, two feet, etc.

33. Ring toss—use a large hoop or hula hoop, drop it on target, go through it

34. Wagon play—fill it up, empty it, get pulled, pull it, ride on it, push it with one leg

35. Make a ball out of newspaper

36. Using various climbing equipment or obstacles—teach up, down forward, backward, sideways, left, right, around over, under, on top of, underneath, behind, in front of, between, in and out

37. Play "find the missing objects"—crawl around and find them all over floor, locate hidden objects

38. Smell and feel shaving cream, clay, whipped cream, krazy foam, silly string

39. Body lotion, powders, etc.

40. Bubbles

41. Examine and identify textures of food and articles

42. Examine and identify scents of food and articles

Choose Activities

1. Use of knock-down clown type object. Place next to student, tap or move it against body, encouraging grasping and knocking

2. Suspend a balloon or beach ball with string and tape and sway it back and forth, against face, tap it, rub it, encourage student to do the same. Possibly insert rice or other small sound-making item in balloon or beachball. Turn it, hold it and make speech sounds or vibrations, rub it on face and hands. Small bells can be attached to the string.

3. Suspend a bell or string of bells. Try to stimulate a reaction to the sound.

4. Bounce or roll beach ball past student or at student, or use soft bell ball

5. Open or close doors with student

6. Carry or hold objects, one hand or two, vary size and weight

7. Crawling and climbing. Roll up a mat, put student on it, under it. If needed, help student move—roll off, get on, get out, climb over, etc.

8. Walking trips (over gravel, rocks, grass, sand, dirt, cement and blacktop, carpet, tile, over logs, up and down ramps, stairs, puddles, large boulders, logs, chains, etc.)

9. Examine trees, shrubs, stairs, tables, benches, play equipment. Encourage moving around by self, encourage use of exploring and trailing with hands.

10. Expose to wheel toys or toys that roll and have movable parts.

11. Attach punch balloon with elastic to wrist or ankle.

12. Expose to rocking horse, teeter-totter, tumble about (even if only one hand is on it).

13. Sit and twirl in swivel chair or sit/lie down on a wheeled vehicle and be pulled, pushed, etc. Include a 3-wheel vehicle if possible.

14. Shopping bags and boxes—fill up with items and take out.

15. Mat work—place student on hands and knees, teacher sits and lifts student's legs one at a time, etc. Simple stunts—roll like a log, etc.

16. Tinker toy play—construct your own with milk cartons, wooden spools rolled up with newspaper balls, etc.

17. Clubhouse box—with a big cardboard box, crawl through it or sit in it, feel the sides, poke fingers through the hole and grab a finger, talk to from outside the box

18. Balance beam activities

A regular low balance beam or a long narrow 6-12 inch wide rectangular board supported by two bases, probably several inches high.

Walk forward and backward placing one foot in front of the other
Walk sideways on the beam
Crawl across
Scoot across
Walk across with one foot on and one foot off balance beam
Straddle balance beam
Walk up balance beam used as an incline plane (one end of beam supported by box)
Walk down inclined balance beam.

19. Play with an inner tube or tire—walk on it, step in it and out, sit in it, tie it to anything and crawl through, make a tire swing (several inches off the ground and lie on it with tummy

20. Encourage rolling, patting, spinning or just examining a ball

21. Encourage sand box play to teach use of hands, shoveling, scooping, etc.

22. Toys—old spinning tops (listen, feel it), Slinky, Jack in the Box, Fisher Price Peek-a-Boo, etc.

23. Water play—large basin or sink or small pool filled with water and a number of materials or toys: sponges, boats, rubber duckies. Wash items, including rubbing and squeezing.

24. Water pistol to squirt self or others, objects such as balloons or items that will make a sound when water strikes them, fill a cup, etc.

25. Play "find the missing objects"—crawl around and find them all over floor, locate hidden objects

26. Smell and feel shave cream, clay, whipped cream, krazy foam, silly string

27. Body lotion, powders, etc.

28. Bubbles: Feel, break, follow

29. Examine and identify textures of food and articles

30. Examine and identify scents of food and articles

31. To music—encourage movement of body parts in many combinations

32. Place student on any possible moving apparatus from a hammock to a rocking chair and provide movement

33. Pushing—push crumbs, anything with hand, off table and into a container

34. Lick a lollipop

35. Blow a candle, paper strips or balloon tied to a string

36. Provide as many new experiences and toys as possible

37. Encourage as much movement in relation to obstacles as possible. Use verbal terms to left and right, sideways, around, over, under, on top of, go in, sit in, sit under, etc.

If needed, provide sound by tapping or any other means to assist or motivate in climbing or moving or finding object to catch, grab, strike, kick, push or throw to a person or object.

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